Project Credits & Specs:
- Designers: TOMO DESIGN, TO ACC
- Photographs: FREE WILL PHOTOGRAPHY
- Location: Hangzhou, China
- Area: 2 000 m2
- Year: 2022
Project Description:
Emerged more than 100 years ago, the metro plays an essential role in contemporary urban life. Originating from metro transportation, transit-oriented development (TOD) mode is creating a new urban lifestyle. It enables open, efficient, convenient, and composite urban transportation to encounter smart, natural, leisurely, and dreamy future life. Vanke Hangzhou and TOMO Design bring you to a “metro forest” that leads to Wonderland.
A sense of future, interactivity, and ecosystem – Smart, green, and leisurely future urban life
Located in Hangzhou Future Sci-Tech City, Wonderland is a transit-oriented development (TOD) project constructed by Vanke Hangzhou and Hangzhou Metro Group. Built above the depot of Wuchang Station of Metro Line 5, it’s a smart TOD community centered on the theme of “sky, intelligence, and future”.
Apart from residential buildings, the Wonderland project also incorporates offices as well as commercial, public, and cultural facilities to build a large TOD community with a total area of about 1.34 million square meters. The Entrance A Passage at Wuchang Station of Metro Line 5 is linked with the Wonderland community. It is the first stop where visitors arrive at the community and hence defines its first impression.
Compared with pure commercial spaces, this commercial street connecting with the metro station requires unconventional design. Its design needs to not only consider commercial operation but also ensure efficient, convenient transportation access. The space needs to integrate into the metro station as a part of it, and more importantly to act as a connecting point that represents the image of the Wonderland project.
Based on the positioning of the project, TOMO Design breaks the conventional design of metro station-based commercial spaces. Taking “a sense of future, interactivity and ecosystem” as keywords, and adopting a leisurely, natural aesthetic ambiance as well as a clear and efficient circulation strategy, the design team presents a new spatial mode that combines multiple functions including urban metro transportation, commercial street, and signage system.
Sky Forest – “Sky, nature, future” – Portray the first impression of the future new city
When people step out of the metro ticket gate, what comes into view is a large area of softwood hue and warm light, which breaks the cool tone of common metro station spaces and highlights the relaxing, natural atmosphere of the Wonderland community that connects with the station.
The signage words “THIS IS YOUR WONDERLAND” on the ground reminds people that a “forest” linking with the sky is about to unfold.
At the end of the passage, a beam of circular light from the sky falls down. The interplay of sunshine and tree shadows creates a “future forest” floating in the air.
Based on the existing architectural structures, the round skylight is presented in the form of an hourglass. Mirrored metal featuring a sense of technology wraps the side surfaces of the skylight, to reflect the sky and bring it into the space underneath.
With the change of sunshine throughout the day, the daylight and tree reflections seem to create a floating, moving “sky forest”. The skylight captures light and shadows, and records time like a sundial. Besides, the circular light strip echoing UFO and geometrical elements fitting into the space further strengthen the futurist feeling of the skylight area.
Beneath the skylight are circular metallic seating, a customized futuristic lighting fixture, and an iconic robot art installation that represents Wonderland, together forming a scene that integrates nature, technology, and the future.
Like an urban park plaza, this area creates the first impression of Wonderland through relaxing and natural expressions. It provides an iconic venue where people can take a rest, wait for or interact with family members and friends.
The contrast between wood grain and material textures featuring a sense of technology offers a relaxing visual experience. The skylight brings natural light into the space, creating multi-sensory interaction between people and nature.
Distinct paving materials on the floor subtly demarcate different areas, hence avoiding the interference between leisure and motion, and ensuring the efficiency of the metro station passage.
Capsule Commerce – “Open, diversified, convenient” – Create a relaxing, pleasant commercial atmosphere
Two-level stores are set on one side of the metro stage passage. The stores on the first-floor feature protruding eaves, creating a relaxing atmosphere for the outside resting area. In addition, the stylish capsule-shaped light boxes and the transparent glass doors that reveal the warm lighting in the stores create eye-catchy visual effects.
The stores on the second floor are set back to leave space for the outdoor seating area, so as to create an interactive commercial experience and a leisurely, dynamic commercial ambiance. The design helps attract passers-by to stop and consume in the stores, while not affecting the flow of passengers in the metro station.
The commercial facilities can satisfy the consumption demands of some passengers on the way taking the metro. TOMO Design leaves enough passage space for fast motion and also takes consideration into the varied needs of all users, which embodies a people-friendly design concept.
The commercial area and the transportation passage are subtly demarcated through different paving materials, which naturally separate the flow of people with different needs. Besides, the meticulous detailing creates a relaxing, fashionable, and open commercial environment to stimulate passers-by’s desire for consumption, and meanwhile efficiently ensure the fast motion of passengers.
The light boxes opposite the stores incorporate advertisements, which strengthen the commercial atmosphere and meanwhile display metro transfer information along Line 5, hence efficiently conveying commercial and transportation information.
Signage System – Efficient, eye-catching, clear – Connect with the urban artery and show efficiency through details
The main metro station entrance, as a part of the Wonderland project, will need to satisfy a large number of people’s needs for motion, so its core design logic centers on convenient transportation. To better guide the human flow after the project is put into use, TOMO Design created an efficient, clear signage system formed by a series of unified elements.
At the entrance of the metro station passage, capsule-like light boxes as well as luminous arrow symbols form striking wayfinding signs. Those light boxes display varying metro information and other information for the convenience of the citizens. In addition, the light boxes featuring a dot matrix not only convey information but also generate a sense of technology and the future.
Light strips inserted under the handrails help guide people’s movement. The varied paving material textures also indicate the circulation route. The prefabricated tactile pavings for the visually impaired are combined with the curves on the floor, revealing people-centric and subtle details.
The large signage at the metro station’s ticket gate area employs dot matrix elements, with its luminous background and eye-catchy sign guiding passengers’ way to take the metro.
The rich and meticulous details clearly and efficiently guide the human flow in the metro station. By fusing nature with technology, TOMO Design created a unique, efficient, and convenient metro hub space.
Dialoguing with the future, and interacting with nature, Wonderland portrays a picture of the future new city.
Here, people can encounter daily happiness, experience convenient technology, look up to the sky, and enjoy the moment.
The project description is provided by the designers, via Sunshine PR.
About the Designers:
2015 is a significant year for TOMO. Since it was founded and began to develop in Shenzhen. They provide clients with integrated services in environment design, space design, and furniture design. They are committed to the design of commercial spaces, hotels and clubs, office spaces, real estate projects, luxury provide houses, etc.
 mode is creating a new urban lifestyle. It enables open, efficient, convenient, and composite urban transportation to encounter smart, natural, leisurely, and dreamy future life. Vanke Hangzhou and TOMO Design bring you to a "metro forest" that leads to Wonderland.){kind=link}